A Primary Flight Display (PFD) with an integrated Horizontal Situation Indicator (HSI) or Vertical Situation Indicator (VSI) is a modern aircraft instrument dedicated to flight information. The PFD is designed to improve a pilot's situational awareness by integrating information from various aircraft sensing and measuring equipment and the flight management computer into a single display, thereby reducing the amount of time the pilot would have otherwise spent to monitor multiple instruments. The modern day PFD integrates all flight critical information including Attitude, Lateral navigation/Compass, Flight Control, Primary Air Data (Altitude/Heading/Airspeed/Vertical Speed etc.), Traffic (Traffic Alert Collision Avoidance System—TCAS), Weather, Terrain (Enhanced Ground Proximity and Warning System—EGPWS) and Synthetic and Combined vision systems (SVS/CVS). PFDs also increase situational awareness by alerting the aircrew to unusual or potentially hazardous conditions like low airspeed, high rate of descent etc.
A Mode Control Panel (MCP) or Guidance Panel (GP) is the primary interface for a pilot to control autopilot functions. The MCP is usually located in the center of the glare shield for access by both pilots. The MCP includes various knobs and switches for selecting and configuring autopilot functions. When interacting with the MCP, the pilot's attention is directed away from the PFD and other important information.
Hence, there is a need for systems and methods for interactively displaying and receiving input for autopilot functions. Other desirable features and characteristics will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the foregoing technical field and background.